Published in: Journal of the American Chemical Society, vol. 134, p. 1471-1473

Publication date: 2012

Chemically induced bond cleavage of nitrous oxide typically proceeds by rupture of the N–O bond with concomitant O-atom transfer and liberation of dinitrogen. On a few occasions, N–N bond scission has been observed instead. We report a reaction sequence involving an N-heterocyclic carbene and a vanadium complex that results in cleavage of both the N–O bond and the N–N bond.